Italians are creative--there's no doubt about it. Just look at the number of famous Italian artists, from Michelangelo to Botticelli to Da Vinci. So it's no wonder that such an auspicious gene pool breeds creativity. And nowhere is this creative streak more apparent than in the modern Italian art form of...
parking.
Here's a photo of the front of the bar I showed you in my last post. Let's pretend you're an Italian in need of a cappucino. You're in your car. What do you do?
1. Head toward the nearest bar (cafè).
2. Scout out a free parking space (cue theme song from "Mission Impossible.")
3. Drive past the bar. (Theme song intensifies).
4. Realize the folly of trying to find a free parking space.
5. Turn the car around.
6. Pull up on the sidewalk right in front of the bar (avoiding any pedestrians and women with strollers, if possible).
7. Go inside, order your tiny cappucino, and down it in one gulp.
8. Head back to your car.
Note: If there were a police car outside the bar, you would proceed in exactly the same manner, except you'd put on your hazard lights--which roughly translates as: "I know I'm parked illegally, but I promise I'll be right back. Really. As soon as I drink my coffee." Then you belly up to the bar next to the policemen drinking their coffee.
Mission accomplished.
4 comments:
One question. Is the tow truck eager to take your car to the impound like they are in Manhattan? One nano second after your meter clicks off, traffic cops and tow trucks appear, as if by magic, and will tow your vehicle away as you pose with quarter in hand ready to feed the meter.
Absolutely!
Another great post, Natalie.
Grazie!
Tina
Looks just like my old street in SF. Which is why I spent my 20's tooling around town on a 1976 Honda 650 motorcycle.
Hi Alison,
Ha! No, tow trucks aren't as common here, although they do exist. Policeman do give tickets, though, but if you can catch them before they start writing it up, you can usually convince them not to give you the ticket (I have some experience with this!)
Ciao Tina,
I know you know what parking is like here! I can't believe I used to get annoyed when I had to park at the end of the grocery store parking lot in the rain when I lived in the U.S...at least it was a parking spot!
Cynjay, you'd fit right in here with your motorcycle! I'll do a post another day about the motorscooters here...
:-) Natalie
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